A wellhead can be damaged when the exposed casing becomes bent. To fix the problem, operators remove the existing wellhead and cut-down the exposed casing so that a new wellhead can be installed. However, installing the new wellhead presents several challenges. For example, some wells have inner tubing disposed inside the outer casing exposed at the well. In this situation, the operators need to install a “no-weld” casing head (also known as a sleeve-type casing head) on the cut-down casing and need to isolate the inner tubing from the outer casing.
In other problem situations at a well, a wellbore tubular (e.g., drill pipe, collar, casing, or other tubular) may become stuck during drilling, running, or hoisting. Because operators cannot pull the stuck pipe from the casing, the operators must use slip hangers to support the stuck pipe so the pipe can be left in place. Unfortunately, operators must set the slips to support the stuck pipe even though the wellhead (e.g., BOP, diverter, casing head, etc.) is already installed on the surrounding casing.
In one conventional method of setting such slips, operators unbolt the BOP/Diverter from the wellhead's casing head and raise the BOP/Diverter slightly so the operators can gain access inside the casing head. At this point, the operators can set the slips in the casing head and pull on the stuck pipe to engage it further on the slips. Once set, operators bring the BOP/Diverter back down and bolt it to the casing head. As expected, performing this operation by suspending several tons of equipment overhead while operators set slips and test the integrity of seals is time-consuming and difficult. Some other methods of setting slips to suspend a stuck pipe are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,982,795 and 5,301,750, which do not require the removal of the BOP/Diverter.
The subject matter of the present disclosure is directed to overcoming, or at least reducing the effects of, one or more of the problems set forth above.